Column "Flowering Calendar"

Gradually spring is coming into own. The sweet violet has blossomed in Mykolaiv Zoo.

This small flower, though completely inconspicuous, blooms one of the first, and it is difficult not to notice it. Poets and artists did not pass over the sweet violet, many legends are told about it. In ancient Greece the violet was one of the symbols of nature, which awakens from sleep. Holidays were held in Germany in honor of this plant. Violets are not only one of the symbols of the legendary Parisian florists, but also the capital of France. Sweet violet is the emblem of Toulouse. Toulouse confectioners were the first to prepare candied flowers of the plant. The sweet violet was a mascot and a favorite flower of Napoleon Bonaparte and his beloved Josephine. Goethe was also a lover of violets.

It is possible to see meadows of blossoming sweet violets in Mykolaiv Zoo near the enclosure of the Amur leopard, near the alpine hill, near the enclosure of foxes, opposite to the enclosure of antelopes.